Telecom

[Via Satellite 03-02-2015] Iridium has signed agreements with four different terminal manufacturers — and has tentative plans for a fifth — for its upcoming broadband service, Iridium Certus. The operator aims to provide data speeds for a single user terminal reaching 1.4 Mbps with this service. The four partners, Cobham Satcom, Rockwell Collins, L-3 Communications [...]

[Via Satellite 03-02-2015] Honeywell Aerospace has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with OneWeb to provide aircraft equipment and airtime services to OneWeb’s planned satellite constellation. Under the agreement, Honeywell will provide business jet, commercial airline and military aviation customers with aircraft hardware and airtime services that could include weather, navigation and health monitoring of the [...]

[Via Satellite 03-02-2015] AirServices Australia has teamed with Inmarsat and other aviation stakeholders to trial improved flight tracking services on commercial airline flights to and from the country. The announcement follows an International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) resolution on Feb. 6 to adopt a new 15-minute tracking standard for commercial aircraft. ASA is working with [...]

[Via Satellite 02-27-2015] Noting an uptick in expectation for faster bandwidth in the satellite communications market, NSSLGlobal recently ran a study that found nearly half of all superyacht crewmembers expect to receive the same connectivity speeds at sea as they do on land. With superyachts leading rapidly rising expectations for faster and more reliable maritime [...]

[Via Satellite 02-26-2015] The “connected car” and “smart cities” are two potentially new and exciting markets the satellite industry could play in over the coming years, particularly the former as the potential for “always-on” connectivity could be a big draw for satellite. Andrew Lee, principal consultant on automotive and transportation at Frost & Sullivan, says this [...]

[Via Satellite 02-26-2015] Intelsat and ITC Global will provide ground-to-ground satellite communication services to Solar Impulse, a completely fuel-free aircraft, during its first round-the-world solar flight. Intelsat and ITC Global will enable the ground crew and support teams to communicate from anywhere to anyone in the world. Using a quick-deploy antenna, the crew will leverage [...]

[Via Satellite 02-26-2015] The Optus Thuraya SatSleeve, which transforms a smartphone into a satellite phone, is now available for iPhone 6. The SatSleeve attaches to the back of a compatible device and is activated through the SatSleeve app. It enables iPhone and Samsung Galaxy users to quickly turn their handsets into a satellite phone with [...]

[Via Satellite 02-25-2015] Hong Kong-based SpeedCast International has purchased CETel Group company Geolink Satellite Services. The acquisition is expected to boost the company’s presence in Africa, where Geolink is active in more than 20 countries. In a statement, SpeedCast said a growing number of its customers in the Asia-Pacific are requesting services in Africa. Geolink, [...]